The Prison Beneath The Sea
by sushigal007
Summary: In which the Doctor, Zoe and Jamie arrive on Prison Base Fourteen and are quickly forced to help the inmates escape from their underwater prison.
1. Prologue

Prologue

In the 21st Century, the human life expectancy increased to 125 years. Fewer people died than were born and the population of Earth increased. At the same time, so did the prison population. By 2106, all prisons were filled. Criminals were kept prisoner on boats, small islands, and eventually in prisons built beneath the sea…


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Zoe watched the central column of the control panel rise and fall while eating a bowl of cereal. "How long until we land?" she asked.

"Shouldn't be long now," the Doctor replied, gently taking her arm and moving her away from the controls. "Why don't you be a dear and go eat in the kitchen with Jamie?"

Zoe pulled a face. "He eats with his mouth open. It's very disgusting."

"So tell him not to."

"I did. He keeps forgetting." She lifted the spoon to her mouth and swallowed a mouthful of Cherios.

"Well just don't drop that on the console." The Doctor pulled a few levers and the column came to a stop. "Ah… there we are." He activated the scanner.

"It looks like a spaceship," Zoe observed, taking in the gloomy, metal walls shown on the screen.

"It looks like a dump," Jamie said from behind her.

"Yes, it does appear to be rather derelict," the Doctor agreed. "I don't think it's a spaceship though, look. It's very damp and rusty out there. There shouldn't be damp on a spaceship."

"So what it is then?" Zoe asked through a mouthful a food.

Jamie pulled a face at her. "Och, can't ye keep ye mouth shut while you're eating?"

"Let's go and see where we are, shall we?" the Doctor said hurriedly. He opened the doors and stepped outside, closely followed by Jamie. Zoe pulled a face at the Scots boy's back before placing her bowl on the console and following them.

Wherever they were, it was certainly damp. The trio found themselves dodging drips and puddles every few steps. Suddenly the Doctor halted. "Look at this," he said, pointing to a plaque on the wall.

"Pr… prison base fourteen," Jamie read slowly. "Nu…North Sea sec… section. Well what does that mean?"

"It means we're in an underwater prison on Earth," the Doctor explained.

"Oh! Yes, I remember reading about those," Zoe said excitedly. "They didn't last long, they couldn't stand up to the sea pressure. Then they solved the problem by creating prisons in space instead."

"So… we're under the sea?" Jamie asked. He looked around at the drips in worry. "Is it safe? What if it all collapses?"

"Yes, you're right," the Doctor agreed. "This one appears to have been vacated, perhaps because of structural damage." He turned and looked at a dripping wall section. "Yes, see, the water's getting in here all right. This isn't safe at all. Let's head back to the TARDIS."

"Wait, what's that?" Jamie said suddenly, grabbing the Doctor's arm. "You hear it?"

The Doctor and Zoe listened. Over the sound of dripping water, they heard a faint echoing clang. "Well. What do you suppose that it?" Zoe asked.

"It's the place collapsing!" Jamie said in a panic. "We'll be drowned!"

"No, it's not that," the Doctor said comfortingly. "There's no sound of rushing water. It's footsteps."

"I thought this place was vacated," Zoe said, slightly puzzled. "It certainly should be."

"Yes, it really should. Shall we go see why it isn't?"

Before his companions could say anything, the Doctor strode off. Zoe and Jamie exchanged glances before running after him.

"Doctor, are you sure we should be doing this?" Zoe asked as soon as she caught up.

"Aye, let's just go back to the TARDIS," Jamie agreed. "Ye said so yourself, it's nae safe."

The Doctor hesitated and looked at the walls again. "Well it can't be that unsafe if there are still people here… perhaps it's only this section."

"But the TARDIS is in this section too," Jamie pointed out. "If we go wandering off and this bit collapses, then we're stuck."

The Doctor looked longingly down the corridor, where the footsteps echoed louder, then back at his companions. "Yes… yes, I suppose you're right," he said grudgingly. "All right then, we'll go."

But before they could leave, the owners of the footsteps turned the corner and the three travellers found themselves staring at five men with guns. With a resigned sigh, the Doctor raised his hands. "It's all right, we're just visitors," he called.

"Oh yeah? Visitors?" one of the men said. He turned to the rest of them. "You hear that? He says they're visitors."

There was a chorus of laughter and he turned back and grinned at the travellers through broken teeth. "Pull the other one mate, there ain't been no visitors down here for years. How did you get in?"

"Well it's difficult to explain," the Doctor began.

The man raised his gun at him. "So start explaining. Before I put a bullet through you."

"Oh there's no need for that," the Doctor said hurriedly. "We mean no harm. I'm the Doctor-"

Before he could go on to introduce his companions, the group of men started to talk loudly among themselves. "I told you so, Pinky, I told you they would send someone," a small, rat-like man said gleefully in a voice that made the brain itch. "We may be Earth's dirty little secret, but they can't just leave us to die, oh no, I told you so."

"Shut up, Mugs," Pinky, the apparent leader said crossly. He lifted the gun slightly. "Earth send you, did they?"

"Er, yes, that's right," the Doctor bluffed. "They didn't give me any details though, just sent me and my two assistants here to deal with it. A medical emergency, they said."

Pinky observed them for a few more seconds, then nodded. "All right. Follow us then."

Several men from the group held back and began walking behind them. "Pretty little girl," Zoe heard one of them say, and inched closer to Jamie and the Doctor. "These aren't guards, are they, Doctor," she asked mournfully.

"No, I'm afraid not," the Doctor muttered. "I think these prisoners must have taken over. It appears that instead of regaining control, they've just been left here."

They stopped in front of a doorway. The door itself was propped up against the wall, orange with rust and half of its original size. "In here," said Pinky, pointing to a line of beds against the far wall. They contained men in various states of consciousness. "Think you can do anything for them?"

The Doctor approached the nearest bed and examined its occupant. "Do you have any sort of laboratory here?"

Pinky snorted. "Do be serious. It got wrecked five years ago."

"Well, without any sort of tests I can't be certain, but I think these men are suffering from cholera," the Doctor explained. "I have some medical equipment on my ship, I'll need my companions to go and fetch it."

Pinky nodded. "All right."

Zoe leaned in close to the Doctor. "What are you doing? They should be fine with oral rehydration."

"I know," the Doctor muttered. "But these men are some of the worst criminals in the world and I want you and Jamie safe in the TARDIS."

Zoe looked grateful. Jamie looked less pleased. "And what about you, Doctor?"

"I'm going to have a look at the filtration system," the Doctor replied. "There must be something wrong with the water supply. OK," he said in a louder voice. "Jamie, you and Zoe return to the TARDIS and fetch me my medical kit."

Jamie blinked in confusion. "But I thought ye said-ow!"

"Shut up, Jamie," Zoe said through gritted teeth, letting go of his fingers, which she had twisted to distract him. "We'll be back shortly," she said in a bright, cheerful voice, and left the room, followed by Jamie, who rubbed his hand and glared at her.

The Doctor examined some of the other prisoners, but without any equipment, he couldn't be certain of his diagnosis. It seemed apparent that some water-bourne infection was at work and after a few minutes, he straightened up and asked Pinky to show him to the main computers.

"They haven't been used in quite a while," Pinky said, slightly shamefaced. "Not since the guards went. None of us know how to work them."

"How long has it been since the guards… er, left?" the Doctor asked.

"Ten years," Pinky answered.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow at him. "And if you don't mind me asking, what do you do for food?"

Pinky smirked at him through his broken teeth. "You don't seem to know much. Was it all covered up? I guess it must have been," he added, answering his own question. "Must have been a big embarrassment for them. But they send down supply subs every so often. Can't just let us die, embarrassing or not."

They entered a room less damp than the others, which housed a large computer. "There yer go," Pinky indicated.

The Doctor grabbed a nearby chair and sat in front of a screen. "Ah, this looks simple enough. See here," he added, waving Pinky over. "All the essential base amenities are automated, see? Oxygen, electricity, water… you can bring up the individual systems here and check how they're functioning," he demonstrated.

"You're good with computers then?" Pinky asked with interest.

"Well, I'm not too bad," the Doctor said modestly. "And this one really isn't too complicated if you know what you're doing. Ah, now here's the water filtration network," he continued, happy to be solving a puzzle. He didn't notice Pinky cross the room and whisper something to one of the other prisoners.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Zoe fixed her eyes on the scanner and tried to ignore Jamie as he paced the length of the console room. "Any sign of him?" the boy asked for at least the twentieth time.

Zoe gritted her teeth. "Yes, he's right there and I just didn't bother to tell you."

Jamie whirled around and joined her at the scanner controls. "What are ye on about? He's nae there!"

"I was teasing you," Zoe muttered.

"Well don't!" Jamie drummed his fingers on the console. "I dinnae like this. He's been gone too long." He walked around the console and pulled the lever to open the doors. "I'm going after him."

Zoe grabbed him by the arm. "The Doctor said to stay here! Those men are dangerous!"

"And that's why I'm going," Jamie said, gently removing himself from her grasp. "If he's in some sort of trouble, he'll need my help."

Zoe bit her lip, then nodded. "OK. But I'm coming with you."

"No," Jamie said firmly. "I saw the way those men were looking at ye. You'll be far safer here. Besides," he added, "you need t' stay here in case the Doctor does come back."

Zoe tried not to look too relieved to be ordered to stay. "All right. But be careful. It wasn't just me they were looking at, you know!"

Jamie snorted. "Ah can take care of myself. Now, close the doors after me, and STAY HERE."

With those parting words, he left the safety of the TARDIS and stepped back into the dank, dingy prison corridor. He turned and waved for Zoe's benefit, then strode off in the direction of the makeshift medical ward.

A few corridors later, he sensed someone behind him. "Who's there?" he called out sharply.

"Hello, pretty boy," a high-pitched voice replied, and the rat-like Mugs stepped out of the shadows, holding an iron bar. "Pinky sent me to find you, he did."

"Oh he did, did he?" Jamie pointed down the corridor. "Well I've got what the Doctor wanted, so I'll be off, OK?"

"Oh no, it won't be necessary," Mugs replied and giggled. "We're going to go soon."

"Aye, well, that's nice." The Scot backed away slightly. "I'll just-"

Mugs swung the bar at his head. Jamie managed to dodge the blow and before he could swing again, he tackled the man and sent him crashing to the ground.

A rush of air signalled to him that he was still in danger. He rolled away and another iron bar crashed into the ground where his head had been. The large man holding it cursed and swung for him again. Jamie ducked and turned to run back down the corridor, when yet another prisoner stepped in front of him.

"Och come on now, that's now fair!" Jamie protested, backing away from the newest threat.

"Not fair, not fair!" Mugs screeched from the floor. Suddenly he lashed out and hit Jamie in the ankles with his bar.

He fell to floor with a yelp and before he could get up, the other two men were upon him, raining blows against him. The first blow struck him square across the head, knocking him out cold, but it was several seconds before the prisoners realised their victim was no longer fighting. They stepped away from Jamie's broken body, panting slightly.

"Is he still alive?" the larger man asked, wiping his brow.

Mugs, crawled over and dug his fingers viciously into the boy's neck. "Yep." He poked at Jamie's kilt. "Wanna see if he's a real Scot?" he asked with a gleeful grin.

The other prisoner slapped his hand away. "Stop it and help us get him to the interrogation chamber."

Back in the computer room, the Doctor had managed to isolate a portion of the water pipes. "There you are," he said triumphantly, jabbing at the screen. "The filter there is broken and allowing bacteria to get into the system."

"We ain't got no filters, I don't think," Pinky said, leaning over his shoulder. "And we wouldn't know how to change them if we did."

"Oh that's no problem." The Doctor started tapping at the keyboard. "I can close some of the pipes and sent the water through a different route."

Pinky straightened up and Mugs entered the room and nodded at him. "Well thanks, Doc, but we've got another idea."

"Oh?" The Doctor looked up in interest. "What's that then?"

"We're going to abandon ship, so to speak, and head back to the surface," Pinky said simply.

The Doctor looked from Pinky to the computer in suspicion. "I had the feeling that wasn't possible."

Pinky grinned. "It wasn't. Before. I gather you worked it out from the computer, but there's a force field around this base that prevents us from leaving."

"And you want me to switch it off for you," the Doctor finished. "Well I'm not too sure I should do that."

"And why not?" Pinky asked in interest. "You know this place is falling apart and that we've been left here by Earth."

"I also know you're Britain's worst criminals," the Doctor countered. "Your files are all logged in the computer. You murdered the guards and tried to escape, which is why you were left here." He stood up and stepped away from the computer. "The water is safe to drink now, the rest of the services are working properly and you said so yourself that supply subs still come. Eventually this place will be evacuated and you will be moved to new prisons."

"You know, I don't much fancy going to a new prison," Pinky replied thoughtfully.

"Well I'm very sorry, but I'm not deactivating the force field," the Doctor said firmly, crossing his arms stubbornly.

Mugs giggled. "You will, you will, oh yes you will!" he chanted.

Without turning to look, Pinky threw a book at him. "Shut up, Mugs. But he's right, Doctor, I think you will help us." He crossed the room and flicked a switch on a large screen.

The Doctor's jaw dropped in horror as he found himself looking at Jamie, bloodied and unconscious and unceremoniously dumped onto the floor of a damp room. "What have you done to him?!"

"Relax, he's fine," Pinky said. "Well, almost fine, save for a few broken bones. Just a few, I think. But anyway, he's alive. At the moment. Do you know what that room is, Doctor?"

The Doctor wrenched his gaze away from his beaten friend and looked at the surroundings. "No… I can't say I do."

"That," Pinky said ceremoniously waving his arms. "That is the interrogation room."

"I'm assuming it's slightly more than a bright light in the eyes," the Doctor muttered.

"Oh yes. It's more a torture chamber really," Pinky said cheerfully. "Basically, it fills with water. The guards yell questions at you and if you don't answer quickly enough, you drown."

"But that's barbaric!" the Doctor exclaimed. "It wouldn't be allowed!"

"Ah, but we're barbaric people," Pinky reminded him. "You saw our files, you know why we're here. And in case it's not clear enough, I will spell it out for you." He leaned in close and jabbed the Doctor in the chest. "I'm here because I killed twenty-three people to see what would happen with each different weapon. I will quite happily kill your friend if you do not open the force field."

The Doctor sat down in front of the computer again. "Very well."

"Good boy." Pinky grinned. "Now Mugs, go turn on the taps."

The Doctor leapt to his feet as Mugs left the room. "What are you doing?!" he cried. "I said I'd do it!"

"Just making sure," Pinky said with a cheerful grin. "Ah, there we go." He pointed to the screen, where water was beginning to pour rapidly into the room. On screen, Jamie spluttered and rolled over as water splashed into his face. "I figure you've got a good five minutes before the water gets too high for your young friend to breath."

Knowing that arguing would only waste precious time, the Doctor sprang into action and began tapping frantically at the computer in search for the force field settings. He glanced up at the screen and was horrified to see that the water was already up to Jamie's waist. "It's filling up too fast! I need more time!"

"No more time, you'll just have to type faster," Pinky said, gazing at the screen with interest. "Oooh, it looks like his arm's broken. Do you think he'll be able to tread water OK?"

Mugs joined him at the screen. "Poor pretty boy, I would've liked to play with him."

"Bit old for you, if I remember correctly." Pinky glanced back at the Doctor. "How's it going? The water's up to his neck, by the way."

"There! There, it's done!" The Doctor spun the screen round for them to view. "Now let him go!"

Pinky shook his head. "Actually, we're off. You've got a choice now, you can either reactivate the force field, or go and save him. Down the corridor, left, right, right again, third door on the left. Bye!"

And before the Doctor could stop them, they were gone. Without even glancing at the computer, the Doctor ran out of the room and sprinted down the corridor, hoping against hope that Pinky had been telling the truth.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Water poured down the outside of the door. It was larger than the other doors on board and fitted with a large locking wheel that needed all of the Doctor's strength to open it. After several agonizing seconds, the wheel began to move, the aged and rusty cogs within screeching and grinding. As soon as it was unlocked, the door flew open and a tidal wave of water rushed out. The Doctor stood firm and managed to catch Jamie as he tumbled out into his arms.

It only took a second for the Doctor to take in that Jamie was unconscious and not breathing. Immediately, he lay the boy down on the floor, tilted his head back, pinched his nose and breathed deeply into his mouth.

The effect was immediate; Jamie's body jolted as the air forced the water out of his lungs and he rolled over and coughed until his throat was raw.

"Oh thank goodness for that! Jamie, are you all right, my boy?" The Doctor hauled him roughly into a sitting position and looked at him with concern.

Jamie groaned and clutched at his head. "It all hurts…"

Sea water continued to pour out of the chamber; the Doctor hadn't wasted time trying to work out how to turn it off. Around them, the elderly metal creaked and groaned.

"Can you stand? Can you walk?" the Doctor asked sharply, hauling Jamie to his feet. The boy hissed with pain. "I'm sorry, but we need to get out of here and back to the TARDIS. We need to let the authorities know that the prisoners have escaped."

"Aye, I'll be fine," Jamie said weakly. "Just let me lean on ye."

The two of them began to wade through the water back towards the TARDIS as fast as they could. Every step jarred the broken bones in Jamie's body and silent tears of pain ran down his face, but he kept going, aided heavily by the elder man.

As they reached the TARDIS, the door opened and Zoe came running out. "Oh my goodness, what happened?!" she cried in horror, running to Jamie's side and helping him inside. She jolted his broken arm and he cried out in pain.

"The prisoners have escaped, we need to alert the authorities," the Doctor explained quickly. "As soon as we've done that, we need to get Jamie to a hospital. Can you see if you can help him at all?" he asked Zoe, carefully helping Jamie onto the small bed at the end of the console room.

"Of course," Zoe said eagerly, and raced off to the TARDIS medical bay. The Doctor began programming their flight path as she returned and began dousing his wounds with antiseptic.

It didn't take them long to arrive and after a quick glance at the scanner screen, the Doctor stepped outside.

The TARDIS had materialised inside a police station and several officers were gazing at the blue Police Box in shock. The Doctor clapped his hands together, making them jump. "Am I in the right place to report a crime?"

The police officers exchanged nervous glances.

"No answer?" The Doctor looked at them all. "I'm going to assume I am then. Now, this is very important and I don't have time to dilly-dally. The prisoners of Prison Base Fourteen have escaped."

There was a few seconds silence before the room erupted with laughter. "Pull the other one, Granddad," one of the officers said between guffaws. "There's a force field round that place and they're all too stupid to deactivate it."

"Yes, quite," the Doctor agreed. "However, I am extremely clever. That's why they made me do it."

The laughter began to die down. "OK, so how did you get in there? No-one's been to Prison Base Fourteen for years," a female officer questioned.

The Doctor pointed at the TARDIS. "The same way I got in here." He raised a hand for silence as another officer began to speak. "Look, I'm terribly sorry, but I don't have time for questions. They'll be arriving at the surface soon in an escape ship. I assume they mean to go on the run. I'M SORRY," he said loudly as the officers began to fire questions at him. "Normally I would stay and ensure that you catch them but I really must go!"

Before they could stop him, he stepped back into the TARDIS, shutting the door behind him.

"How is he?" he asked, flicking switches and pulling levers on the control panel.

Zoe flicked her fringe out of her eyes and sighed heavily in frustration. "He's got broken bones, he's soaked to the skin and he's covered in bruises, I'm terrified he's bleeding internally and I have no way of dealing with any of it. I found some morphine in the medical bay and now he's asleep at least, but there's nothing more I can do!" She kicked the console in a fit of temper.

The Doctor moved around the console and gave her a quick hug. Zoe buried her face in his shoulder and began to cry angrily. "It's all right, Zoe," he said as comfortingly as he could. "We're going to go to a very good hospital…"


End file.
